Arcana Coelestia (Potts) n. 4072

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4072. Verses 4-13. And Jacob sent, and called Rachel and Leah to the field unto his flock. And he said unto them, I see your father's faces, that he is not at all toward me as yesterday and the day before; and the God of my father hath been with me. And ye know that with all my strength I have served your father. And your father hath deceived me, and hath changed my reward ten ways, and God hath not suffered him to do evil with me. If he said thus, The party-colored shall be thy reward, then all the flock bore party-colored, speckled, and grizzled. And the angel of God said unto me in the dream, Jacob; and I said, Behold me! And he said, Lift up I pray thine eyes, and see all the he-goats which leap upon the flock, party-colored, speckled, and grizzled; for I have seen all that Laban doeth unto thee. I am the God of Bethel, where thou anointedst a pillar, where thou vowedst a vow unto me; now arise, go forth out of this land, and return unto the land of thy nativity. "And Jacob sent, and called Rachel and Leah to the field unto his flock," signifies the adjunction of the affections of truth by the good now meant by "Jacob," and application at the time when it departed; "and he said unto them, I see your father's faces, that he is not at all toward me as yesterday and the day before," signifies a change of state in the good signified by "Laban;" "and the God of my father hath been with me," signifies that all things which He had were from the Divine; "and ye know that with all my strength I have served your father," signifies that it was of His own power; "and your father hath deceived me; and hath changed my reward ten ways," signifies the state of good toward Himself, when of Himself He applied the things of that good, and its very great change; "and God hath not suffered him to do evil with me," signifies that still it could not hinder; "if he said thus, The speckled shall be thy reward, then all the flock bore speckled," signifies His freedom, and that in His freedom those things were taken by the Lord, even to evils that were adjoined to the goods; "and if he said thus, The party-colored shall be thy reward, then all the flock bore party-colored," signifies the same in the case of the falsities that were adjoined; "and God hath taken away the acquisition of your father, and hath given it to me," signifies that these were from the Divine; "and it came to pass at the time that the flock grew warm," signifies the ardor of affection that they might be conjoined; "that I lifted up mine eyes, and saw in a dream," signifies the perception of natural good in obscurity; "and behold the he-goats which leaped upon the flock were party-colored, speckled, and grizzled," signifies the effect that the natural good meant by "Jacob" should be imbued with such things from that source; "and the angel of God said unto me in the dream, Jacob; and I said, Behold me!" signifies perception from the Divine, and presence in that obscure state; "and he said, Lift up I pray thine eyes," signifies attention thereto from that which was His own; "and see all the he-goats which leap upon the flock, party-colored, speckled, and grizzled," signifies that such things should be introduced; "for I have seen all that Laban doeth unto thee," signifies the own of the good signified by "Laban," that it is not such as to act from itself; "I am the God of Bethel," signifies the Divine in the natural; "where thou anointedst a pillar," signifies where the good of truth is, and its boundary; "where thou vowedst a vow unto me," signifies what is holy; "now arise," signifies elevation; "go forth out of this land," signifies separation from that good; "and return unto the land of thy nativity," signifies conjunction with the Divine good of truth.


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